{"id":47461,"date":"2026-01-14T14:16:09","date_gmt":"2026-01-14T14:16:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/?p=47461"},"modified":"2026-01-14T14:16:09","modified_gmt":"2026-01-14T14:16:09","slug":"kwazulu-natal-government-not-on-the-brink-of-collapse-ifp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/2026\/01\/14\/kwazulu-natal-government-not-on-the-brink-of-collapse-ifp\/","title":{"rendered":"KwaZulu-Natal government not on the brink of collapse \u2013 IFP \u2013 Newsday"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>The Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) has sought to project calm over the stability of the KwaZulu-Natal Government of Provincial Unity (GPU).<\/p>\n<p>This comes as uncertainty grows following the National Freedom Party\u2019s (NFP) announcement that it intends to withdraw from the coalition and has suspended its sole provincial representative.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking at a media briefing on January 14, 2026, the IFP downplayed suggestions that the provincial government was facing imminent collapse, describing such claims as \u201cmisguided\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>With just one seat in the 80-member legislature, the NFP\u2019s departure strips the GPU, comprising the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), African National Congress (ANC), and Democratic Alliance (DA), of its razor-thin majority, leaving it vulnerable to opposition challenges.<\/p>\n<p>The GPU was formed in the aftermath of the 2024 national and provincial elections, where no single party secured an outright majority in KZN.<\/p>\n<p>The IFP\u2019s Thami Ntuli holds the premiership, originally supported by the ANC, DA and NFP, totalling a collective 41 seats against the uMkhonto weSizwe Party\u2019s (MKP\u2019s) 37 and the Economic Freedom Fighters\u2019 (EFF) two.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe entered this arrangement in good faith, not for positions or political expediency, but because the people of this province deserve a government that puts cooperation above conflict,\u201d IFP\u2019s Blessed Gwala said. <\/p>\n<p>He added that with unemployment, crime and deteriorating infrastructure persisting, \u201cpolitical instability is a luxury our province simply cannot afford\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>The briefing comes amid deepening divisions within the NFP, with factions in the party either for or against working with former President Jacob Zuma\u2019s MK Party.<\/p>\n<p>On January 9, NFP president Ivan Barnes announced the three-month suspension of provincial chairperson Mbali Shinga, who also serves as MEC for Social Development.<\/p>\n<p>Her seat has been central to the GPU\u2019s narrow majority in the provincial legislature.<\/p>\n<p>The dispute arose after Shinga declined to support an MKP motion of no confidence against Ntuli in December 2025, despite a directive from the NFP leadership. <\/p>\n<p>While the NFP has publicly cited \u201ccoalition challenges\u201d for its intended exit, the IFP said it had not received formal notification.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor the record, we have not been officially informed of their decision to pull out of the GPU,\u201d the party said, adding that Shinga \u201ccontinues to be an integral part of the GPU\u2019s accelerated service delivery agenda\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>The IFP\u2019s national executive committee has since instructed party leaders to engage the NFP to \u201cunderstand better their areas of concern and difference in order to find lasting solutions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The NFP is a splinter party of the IFP formed by the late\u00a0Zanele kaMagwaza-Msibi\u00a0and other ex-members, due to internal power struggles.<\/p>\n<p>The IFP also used the briefing to defend Ntuli against renewed pressure from the MKP, rejecting a motion of no confidence and accusing its opponents of attempting to destabilise the provincial administration.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe looters and enablers of state capture of yesteryear cannot be trusted as the people\u2019s messiahs of today,\u201d said Gwala<\/p>\n<p>He argued that claims of failure within the GPU were not borne out of developments under Ntuli\u2019s leadership.<\/p>\n<p>The party pointed to what it described as economic recovery, improved investment, stabilisation of municipalities, declining crime levels and accelerated infrastructure delivery.<\/p>\n<p>The IFP warned against public posturing and destabilisation, saying such actions \u201cplay into the hands of the MKP, which does not have the interests of the people of KZN at heart\u201d, and said it remained committed to dialogue and continuity in governance.<\/p>\n<p>With the NFP\u2019s position unresolved, the balance of power in the legislature remains finely poised. <\/p>\n<p>The remaining GPU partners \u2014 the IFP, ANC and DA \u2014 hold 40 seats, while the MKP and EFF together hold 39, raising the possibility of legislative deadlock should Shinga lose her seat.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">NFP in KZN<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/KwaZulu-Natal-government-not-on-the-brink-of-collapse-%E2%80%93-IFP.png?resize=640%2C360&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14707\" srcset=\"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/KwaZulu-Natal-government-not-on-the-brink-of-collapse-\u2013-IFP.png 1200w, https:\/\/newsday.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Mbali-Shinga-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/newsday.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Mbali-Shinga-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/newsday.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Mbali-Shinga-600x338.png 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>Shinga, thrust into the national spotlight as \u201cthe woman who stopped the MK Party,\u201d has portrayed her stance as a principled defence against political bullying and chaos.<\/p>\n<p>In an interview with the Daily Maverick, she described the MK Party\u2019s behaviour during the no-confidence vote as \u201cdisgusting,\u201d Shinga exclaimed, \u201cAnd I was supposed to work with those people (MK)!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She framed her defiance as broader than party politics, asserting, \u201cI am standing for justice and precedent. This is down to the emancipation of women.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Criticising Barnes directly, Shinga claimed he lacked authority to align with MK and EFF, calling it \u201cjust his personal choice\u201d and labelling NFP management as \u201cembarrassing\u2026 chaos.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She admitted the party is \u201chighly factionalised,\u201d highlighting deep divisions that have plagued the NFP since its inception.<\/p>\n<div class=\"text-center border p-3 bg-light mt-4 rounded\">You have read 1 out of 5 free articles. Log in or register for unlimited access.<\/div>\n<p>                        <!-- Share Data Setup for JavaScript --><\/p><\/div>\n<p><script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n#KwaZuluNatal #government #brink #collapse #IFP #Newsday<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) has sought to project calm over the stability of the KwaZulu-Natal Government of Provincial Unity&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":47462,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-47461","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mzansi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47461","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=47461"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47461\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":47463,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47461\/revisions\/47463"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/47462"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47461"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47461"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=47461"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}